Loyalists and Revolutionaries: Political Leaders Compared

What motivates political leaders to seek office? What social backgrounds do political leaders exhibit? Are all leaders fundamentally alike or do we find important differences between them? These and related questions concerning political leadership are examined in this unique new work. The authors concentrate on two principal types of political leaders: Loyalists, those who seek office through peaceful processes, whether appointive or elective; and Revolutionaries, those who seize power in violent ways. By systematically comparing the similarities and differences between these two groups, Rejai and Phillips find that Loyalists and Revolutionaires are basically the same type of person. However, their most significant differences lie in their relative access to positions of power and authority within their respective societies.